CE Webinar Series
To be certified and maintain certification every year as a Virginia Master Naturalist, volunteers are required to complete 8 hours of continuing education. To assist volunteers needing to meet this requirement, the state program offers continuing education through our annual statewide conference and an online webinar series. To attend a webinar, please click on the registration button below the webinar description. You can also access previous webinars by streaming a recording online, following the links provided at the bottom of the page.
In addition to these monthly CE webinars, we have offered an occasional, irregularly scheduled High Five From Nature webinar series.
NEXT WEBINAR: FINAL ONE FOR 2026!
Other Than Oak
Date: Monday, November 9, 12:00 – 1:00 pm
Description: What’s so great about Oak? Are there other trees in Virginia that are as awesome? Oak, rightly so, has garnered much attention, however, there may be more to the story than you know. Join us for this webinar to discover the history of oak in our region, the unique qualities of Quercus species for humans and the ecosystem and, finally, to explore “life beyond oak” concluding with some take home “so what” action steps.
Presenter: Adam Downing. Since 2001 Adam has worked as the Forestry and Natural Resources Extension Agent serving Virginia Cooperative Extension’s Northwest District. Adam holds a B.S. Degree in Forestry from Purdue University and a M.S. Degree in Forest Resources from Penn State University. Adam is a Fellow in the Society of American Foresters and was recognized as the National recipient of the Technology Transfer Award in 2021. In 2023 he received the Gerald P. McCarthy Award for Leadership in Environmental Conflict Resolution from the UVA Institute for Engagement & Negotiation and in 2024 received the John A Beale award from the Society of American Foresters. As much as Adam loves trees, he loves people more and for fun he likes to ride a motorbike with church friends.
Note: We are continuing to implement our new registration process for this and future VMN CE Webinar sessions. You will register through our centralized Virginia Cooperative Extension registration. This will help streamline the documentation and reporting we do for program activities. When you complete registration, you will receive a confirmation email with the Zoom link to join.
View Earlier Webinars from the 2026 Series
Heated Topics, Warm Approaches: Navigating Tough Conversations About Natural Resources
Presenter: Ginger Orton, Warnall School of Forestry and Natural Resources, University of Georgia
Recorded: 7 October 2026
Beyond Debate: Navigating divisive issues in outreach conversations
Presenter: Andrea Lorek Strauss, University of Minnesota Extension
Recorded: 19 August 2026
From Shoreline to Solutions: How the International Coastal Cleanup Drives Change
Presenters: Christina Trapani, Emily Bods, and Kat Martin, Clean Virginia Waterways
Recorded: 4 August 2026
Living with Coyotes
Presenter: Leah Card, Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources
Recorded: 30 July 2026
Our Underwater Grasses: Monitoring to support future restoration efforts in the Chesapeake Bay
Presenters: Mary Gartner and Kati Booth, The Nature Conservancy
Recorded: 29 July 2026
The Virginia Household Water Quality Program: empowering Virginia’s well and spring owners through testing and educational resources
Presenters: Erin Ling and Meredith Snyder, Virginia Tech Department of Biological Systems Engineering
Recorded: 23 June 2026
The Virginia Native Seed Project with the Clifton Institute
Presenter: Rachel Martin, The Clifton Institute
Recorded: 22 May 2026
Going on a Butternut Hunt: Assessing health and potential resistance of butternut trees (Juglans cinerea) to butternut canker disease in Virginia
Presenter: Mia Murray, graduate student in environmental science, University of Virginia
Recorded 19 May 2026
Insights from the Claudius Project on poisonous mushrooms of Virginia
Presenter: John Dent, Virginia Master Naturalist volunteer (Rivanna Chapter) and Emeritus Professor of Medicine with the University of Virginia School of Medicine
Recorded 14 April 2026
The Virginia Wildlife Action Plan: A Plan for the Next 10 Years
Presenter: Jeff Trollinger, Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources
Recorded 11 March 2026
Living with Eastern Coyote in Virginia
Presenter: Leah Card, Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources
Recorded 5 February 2026
Looking Back and Forward: VMN Program 2025 Retrospective and 2026 Kickoff
Presenters: Virginia Master Naturalist Program State Office Personnel
Recorded 29 January 2026
View Earlier Webinars from the 2025 Series
Reaching an audience where they are – Outreach in Interpretation
Presenter: Angela Yau, Nature Program Facility Manager at Locust Grove Nature Center with Montgomery Parks in Maryland
Recorded 5 November 2025
The ecology and restoration of urban forested natural areas
Presenter: Dr. Tara L.E. Trammell, John Bartram Associate Professor of Urban Forestry, Plant and Soil Sciences Department, University of Delaware
Recorded 22 October 2025
Chapter Leadership Demystified
Presenters: Michelle Prysby (VMN Program Director, Virginia Tech/Virginia Cooperative Extension), Tiffany Brown (VMN Program Assistant, Virginia Tech/Virginia Cooperative Extension), Pam Faulkner (VMN, Riverine Chapter), Cassandra Lopez (VMN, Fairfax Chapter), Brian Scott (VMN, Tidewater Chapter)
Recorded 30 September 2025
Spanish for Naturalists
Presenters: Jack Person (VMN, Arlington Regional Chapter), Wendy Cohen (VMN, Fairfax Chapter), Josefina Doumbia (VMN, Fairfax Chapter), Lesley Newman (VMN, Headwaters Chapter), Kate Pugh (Western Albemarle High School teacher)
Recorded 23 September 2025
Spanish for Naturalists vocabulary list (available as HTML or PDF)
Soil Health for a Thriving Virginia
Presenter: Summer Thomas and Mary Sketch Bryant, Virginia Soil Health Coalition and Virginia Cooperative Extension
Recorded: 14 July 2025
Bonus webinar: Beech Leaf Disease Survey Training
Presenter: Lori Chamberlin, Forest Health Manager, Virginia Department of Forestry
Recorded: 17 June 2025
VMN Educators Bureau Flash Talks
Presenters (all VMN volunteers, shown in order of appearance): BeeHurricane Thompson, Tanya Finch, Nora Cox, Rod Walker, Edie Juno, Robert “Bob” Dunstan, Robin Duska, David Lauthers, Michael Walker
Recorded: 12 June 2025
Bonus webinar: Birdability Project Re-launch and Kickoff Webinar – Together on the Trail: Accessible Birding and the Birdability Map
Presenter: Cat Fribley, Birdability
Recorded: 10 June 2025
Butterfly population trends in America north of Mexico and their most likely drivers
Presenter: Leslie Ries, Associate Professor, Georgetown University
Recorded: 5 May 2025
Balancing Nature in a Growing City
Presenter: Dr. Trakela Wright-Hicks, Virginia Cooperative Extension Urban Forestry Specialist, Virginia State University
Recorded: 10 April 2025
Gray Fox in Virginia
Presenter: Victoria Monette, PhD student, Virginia Tech Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation
Recorded: 26 March 2025
Ecological forecasting to anticipate the future of forests and freshwaters
Presenter: Quinn Thomas, Virginia Tech Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation
Recorded: 24 February 2025
VMN Treemendous 20th Anniversary Kickoff and Program Awards
Presenters: Michelle Prysby, Tiffany Brown, and Lori Chamberlin (VDOF)
Recorded: 23 January 2025
View Older CE webinar videos
Virginia Master Naturalist Continuing Education Webinar Series (2014-2024)
View our Continuing Education Webinar Series playlist from all previous years.
Diversity and Inclusion in Natural Resource Education (2021)
In this webinar series, we aim to share with Virginia Master Naturalist volunteers and others several stories and examples of people connecting diverse audiences to natural resources. Funding for this webinar series was provided through a grant from the Virginia Environmental Endowment.
Connecting Black, Indigenous, and People of Color to Nature in Baltimore, November 1, 2021
Environmental Justice in Virginia, December 2, 2021
Birdability: because birding is for everybody and every body!, December 9, 2021
Connect with Us
For general inquiries about the Virginia Master Naturalist program, please contact:
masternaturalist@vt.edu540-231-0790